Sussex Community NHS Foundation Trust (SCFT) is pleased to announce, that following a competitive recruitment process, Dr Karen Eastman will be joining the Trust as the new Chief Medical Officer (CMO) in January 2024.
Dr Eastman joins SCFT following her role as Clinical Director of Programmes for the Sussex Integrated Care System (ICS), providing clinical leadership across large-scale transformation programmes ensuring a focus on population health management, health inequalities and prevention.
Alongside her current role for Sussex ICS, Dr Karen Eastman has been a Pain Management GP with Special Interest for University Hospitals Sussex NHS Foundation Trust and the Senior GP Partner for The Brow Health Centre in Burgess Hill, where she will continue in a salaried GP role.
Dr Karen Eastman said: “I am so excited to have been appointed as the Chief Medical Officer for Sussex Community NHS Foundation Trust. I feel honoured to have the opportunity to work with the many excellent teams within the organisation as well as the Board to continue to build collaborative partnerships across Sussex, improve outcomes, address inequalities and provide high quality personalised care for the population we serve.”
Siobhan Melia, Chief Executive of Sussex Community NHS Foundation Trust said: “I am really pleased to have Karen join us on the board as our Chief Medical Officer. Karen has worked within Sussex for 29 years and brings with her a clear understanding of our communities, as well as a passion for improving patient outcomes.”
“I would also like to say thank you to Dr Sara Lightowlers our current Chief Medical Officer. In particular, I would like to thank Sara for her clinical leadership during the pandemic and her unwavering commitment to patient safety. On behalf of my executive colleagues, I wish Sara all the best for the future.”
Dr Karen Eastman will commence her role as Chief Medical Officer in January 2024.
